Plate whirler



F. T. POWERS 2,356,946

PLATE WHIRLER Filed Jan. 5, 1942 3 Sheets-Sheet l Aug. 29, 1944.

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F. T. POWERS PLATE wHIRLER s sheets-sheet 2 Filed Jah. 3, 1942 IDIIVEN-lOR t Wwmsw Aug 29,1944 F. T. PowRs 2,356,945

. PLATE WHIRLER Filed Jan. s, 1942 :s sheets-sneek s v'- y i i I /7 NvENToR Y' f fm.

Patented Aug. 29, 1944 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE PLATE WHIRLER Frank T. Powers, GlenCove, N. Y.

Application January 3, 1942, Serial No. 425,547

7 Claims.

This invention relates to an apparatus and method for evenly distributing and drying a wet coating on the surface of a flat plate such as the sensitive coating on photo-engraving plates.

Objects and advantages of the invention will be set forth in part hereinafter and in part will be obvious herefrom, or may be learned by practice with the invention, the .same being realized and attained by means of the instrumentalities and combinations pointed out in the appended claims.

The invention consists in the novel parts, constructions, arrangements, combinations and improvements herein shown and described.

The accompanying drawings, referred to herein and constituting a part hereof, illustrate one embodiment of the invention, and together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the invention.

Of the drawings:

Figure 1 is a vertical central section through the apparatus with certain parts in elevation and showing a plate in position to be whirled and dried;

Figure 2 is a diagram of the electrical circuit for controlling and operating the apparatus;

Figure 3 is a plan section taken on the line 3--3 of Figure l;

Figure 4 is a plan section taken on the line 4 4 of Figure 1;

Figure 5 is an enlarged fragmentary section of the plate supporting and centraling means taken on line 5 5 of Figure 3;

Figure 6 is a section taken on line 6-6 of Figure 5,;

Figure 7 is an enlarged section of Figure 5; and

Figure 8 is a plan view of the underside of the cover member of the apparatus showing the arrangement of the 'heating elements for'drying the fluid upon the plate. e

One object of the invention is to provide a device for holding a plate in a horizontal plane and whirling it to distribute evenly the coating fluid and cast off the excess material. Another object is to provide convenient means forsupporting plates of various sizes and centralizing taken on line them thereon which may be operated by pedal means, thereby leaving'the operators hands free for placing the plate in the apparatus and upon the supporting, holding and centralizingvmechanism. Another object is'to provide means for drying the uid'upon the plate without first heating the material composing the plate, thereby reducing the time necessary to properly dry the solution and permitting theV handling of the plate with less chances of operatorr injury dueto eX- cessively heated plates. This feature thereby reduces the `cost o fthis step in the process of plate production byv reducing the energy'consumption and the labor time involved. Another object is to provide'V convenient means to control the speed and time of whirling the plates whereby plates and solutions of various composition may be prepared with little effort and attention of the operator.

its shape and contributing to its appearance. A

conical bottom plate is secured in spaced relation to the lower edge of shell I0 by spacer bolts I2 so as to provide a channel I3 through which excess sensitizing solution may drain out of the shell into a collecting gutter I4 from which it may be drawn from time to time through the exit pipe I 5 and valve I E.

For supporting the shell ID and associated parts at a convenient height there may be provided three channel shaped legs I1 secured to the underside of the conical bottom plate near the outer edge thereof and braced near the bottom by a frame member I8 suitably secured to all the legs. The legs further, form the means of support for the gutter 4 to which the latter is secured as by rivets I9.

Means for supporting and whirling'thg plates to distribute evenly and throw olf excess coating fluid are provided and comprise a vertical shaft 25, journaled at the bottom in a bearing 26 carried on the frame member I8 and near the top is a bearing 21 secured at the center of the conical bottom plate ll; a horizontally disposed rack 28, secured to the top of the shaft 25 so as to rotate therewith and securely hold in a substantially centralized position a photo-engraving plate P to be processed; means for rotating the shaft 25 and rack 28 consisting of a pulley 29 rotatably mounted upon the shaft 25 between two friction collars 30, 3| of which the collar 30 is fixed to the shaft and collar 3| is slidably mounted on the shaft but adapted to rotate therewith through a feather connection with the shaft. Pressure is applied to collar 3| by a spring 32 coiled about the shaft 25 and abutting on the collar 3| and a second collar 33 fixed on the shaft whereby, as pulley 29 is driven by motor 34 throughbelt 35, the frictional contactbetween the pulley and the collars 3U, 3| serves to rotate the shaft 25 and plate rack 28.

Referring now tothe means for holdingV and centralizing photo-engraving plate P upon the rack 28, a form of rack may be provided consisting of crossed, horizontally disposed arms 40, 4| secured together at their centers and to the top secured to sleeve `55 by screws 51.

of shaft 25 by gusset plates 42 as by spot welding or otherwise. Both sets of arms 40, 4| may be identical in cross section and as shown are rectangular channel bars having inturned ledges 43 along their side flanges-(Figure 6).

Along the top surface of arms 40, 4|, and in spaced arrangement thereon may be provided plate supporting buttons 44, riveted or otherwise secured to the bars, upon which the plate P may be supported with a minimum of contact whereby damage to the undersurface of -the plate .may be avoided and ease of sliding the plate to its final central position attained.

To centralize the plate P upon rack v28 and retain it there during the whirling operation a `pair of interconnected notched clips 150 are provided, which are U-shaped in form and slidably mounted on the arm 40 on opposite sides of the central mounting of the arm on shaft 25. Sliding connection between the clips 50 and varm 40 is maintained by securing the clips 50 to aslide block which rides within the channel of -arm 40.

vThe two clips 50 are interconnected `through a common actuating means for simultaneous and equal but opposite movement whereby they may be spread apart along arm 40 by pedal means -for insertion of plate P upon rack 28 and 'upon release of the vrpedal may be spring-drawn together in equal amounts to -centralize and hold the plate in processing position. As embodied each clip block 5| has attached thereto an lactuating strap 52 which passes inwardly along the channel of arm'4l] towards the center where it passes around a roller 53 pivoted between two of the gusset plates l4i. adjacent to shaftI 25, From the roller, the strap 52 passes downwardly along a T- shaped groove 54, cut in shaf-t 25, to its point of 'attachment to sliding sleeve 55 to which it may be secured by a key block 56. The strap 52 may be secured to key block 55 by -spot welding or otherwise while in turn the key block may be Key blocks 56 also serve las feathers slidable in shaft grooves 54 to assure rotation of the sleeve 55 with the shaft 25. The straps 52 may be made of any suitable lmaterial which will function as a push- Apull connection, be sufliciently rigid along its straight lreaches and flexible enough to pass around guide rolls. As shown, straps 52 ymay consist of a strip of spring steel having a slightly curved cross section which, as the strip is bent to pass over a Vguide roll, becomes flat in cross section, resuming its 'curved contour again as it straightens out along its new -direction,V Thus, in the illustrated embodiment the straps 52 operate simultaneously and insure accurate centering of the plate P inasmuch as the clamps 50 are positively symmetrically arranged at either side of the vertical axis of the rotatable plate supporter.

The sleeve 55, and hence the clips 50,fis actufated by pedal and spr-ing means through lever and link connections whereby when the pedal is depressed the clips 50 move apart equidistant from the lcenter of rack l28 and upon release of the pedal, clips 50 -are spring-drawn towards the center in equal amounts to grip and center the plate P upon the rack. As embodied a pedal 60, pivoted at 6| to frame member I8, is connected by a `double link 62 .to a double lever -63 which spans and is pivoted at 64 on a bracket 58 secured to the rearmost leg I1. The forward Vend of lever 63 is pivotally attached vto the sleeve 55 by pin and slot connections 65, the pinsof which their various positions.

To spring-draw the clips 50 towards their -central position a spring 10 is interposed between Ypedal 60 and frame member I8 at a point midway 'between pivot 6| and link 62. To limit the downward movement of the inner end oi' pedal 60 there may be provided a stop bar 1| mounted between the members of double link 62 at 'a point rabove the frame member I8 so 'that it will -strike member r|8 just previous to the position where the rear portion vof the pedal 60 would strike the floor.

Means are v,provided for closing the top of shell I0 -and for heating and drying the coating iiuid upon plate P by direct radiant heat instead of -a heated atmosphere and/or heat supplied beneath vthe plate and conducted through it to the solution to be dried. As embodied a circular cover 15 is hinged at 16 to the rear portion of shell |0 and counterweighted for ease of opening and closing by a weight 11 carried within a vertical, hollow post 18 attached to the back of the apparatus by 4brackets 19. Weight 11 is attached to cover 15 by a cable 80 running over pulley 8| pivoted in -post 18 and secured to cover 15 by a bail -82 and bracket 83.

Secured to an opening in the central portion of cover 15 is a heating unit consisting of a rectangular inverted pan 85, the inner surface of which :may be formed as -a heat reilecting surface and upon which are mounted by means of insulated blocks 86 a plurality of electrical heating coi1s'81 the common cable 88 of which passes out of the pan through insulated eyelet 89 to its -inter-connection with the motor and timing circuits as will be hereinafter described. Conveniently placed at the front of the apparatus within easy reach of the operator are control .units consisting of a starting and time limiting switch box `9|) having .a starting button 9| and time setting dial 92, and a motor speed control box 93 having speed control arm 94.

Referring now to Figure 2 there is shown a circuit larrangement which may be used to advantage in the form of apparatus illustrated although other circuits might be used with equal advantage. As embodied, the circuit comprises a source of current A, line |00, main switch |01., line '|02 and a suitabl time switch 90 which may be any one of the several such switches well known in the art wherein acircuit may be closed manually and will stay closed for a selected length of time and then automatically open and stay open until again manually closed. From the open circuit side of time switch 90 line |03 leads to one end of all the heating coils 81 the other ends of which coils are connected to line -|04 which leads back to current source A.

The circuit for motor 34 comprises line |05, stemming from line |03, Speed control rheostat 93 and line |06 connected to return line |04.

Thus, when starting button 9| is pressed, the motor 34 starts rotating -at the speed selected by the setting of rheostat 93 Vthereby whirling the plate P. Simultaneously, the heating coils 81 heat up and start the drying process. The whirling and Ydrying continue for the time desired, as indicated by thesetting of the time switch 90, at the end of which the circuit is automatically opened.

The method of operating the apparatus may be as follows: the operator approaches the apparatus with a photo-engraving plate in his hands, the plate having previously been coated with coating fluid. The cover 15 being open and the machine at rest the operator depresses pedal 60 thereby spreading apart the clips 50. The plate P is then placed upon the rack 28, being centered on the cross arm 4| by judgment of the operator. The pedal BIJ is thenreleased. Under influence of spring the notched clips 50 move together, grip and centralize the plate P on arm 40. The plate P is then ready to be whirled and dried as soon as the cover is drawn down over the shell l0.

After setting the time switch 90 and motor speed control 93 at the points suitable to the article being processed, the starter button 94 is pressed and the plate P starts whirling, being brought gradually up to speed by means of the friction drive arrangement associated with pulley 29. As the motor starts whirling the plate P, excess liquid is driven 01T centrifugally and the remainder evenly distributed over the surface of the plate P.

The heating coils 81 having become radiantly hot during the initial whirling of the plate P the continued whirling time is consumed in drying the solution remaining on the plate.

The time switch 90 then automatically opens the circuit, stopping the motor 34, allowing the coils 81 to cool off, and the plate to come to rest. The cover 15 is then raised by the operator and pedal 60 depressed, releasing the plate P from clips 50 to permit its removal.

The invention in its broader aspects is not 1imited to the specic mechanismsl shown and described but departures may be made therefrom Within the scope of the accompanying claims without departing from the principles of the invention and without sacrificing its chief advantages.

What I claim is:

l. In a plate whirler for photo-engraving use including in combination a rotatable plate support and means on said support for holding a plate centrally of the support comprising a pair of plate holding means at opposite sides of the axis of the support and means for simultaneously and resiliently moving said holding means towards each other and into engagement with 'opposite edges of the plate comprising flexible members connected to the holding members and to a collar -concentric with the supportk and manually releasable resilient means acting on said collar.

2. In a plate whirler for photo-engraving use including in combination a rotatable plate support and means on said support for holding a plate centrally of the support comprising a pair of plate holding means at each side of the axis of the support and means for simultaneouslyland resiliently moving said holding means towards each other and into engagement with opposite edges of the plate comprising a collar concentric with the support, ilexible members interconnecting the collar and holding means, a resiliently actuated, manually released lever acting on the collar to urge the holding means together.

3. In a plate whirler for photoengraving use including in combination a casing enclosing a rotatable plate support and means on said support for holding a plate centrally of the support comprising a pair of plate holding means at opposite sides of the axis of the support and means urging said holding means toward each other into engagement with opposite edges of the plate to centralize the plate on the support including a spring actuated member and flexible means adjacent the axis of the support interconnecting the spring actuated member and plate holding means.

4. In a plate whirler for photoengraving use including in combination a casing enclosing a rotatable plate support and means on said support for holding a plate centrally of the support comprising a pair of plate holding means at opposite sides of the axis of the support and means urging said holding means toward each other into engagement with opposite edges of the plate to centralize the plate on the support including a spring, a lever external to the casing and actuated by the spring, and flexible means interconnecting the lever and plate holding means, said flexible means transmitting motion in both directions whereby the movement of the plate holding means may be controlled from outside the casing.

5. In a plate whirler for photoengraving use including in combination a casing enclosing a rotatable plate support and means on said support for holding a plate centrally of the support comprising a pair of plate holding means at opposite sides of the axis of the support and meansurging said holding means toward each other into engagement With opposite edges of the plate to centralize the plate on the support including a spring, -lever means having a lever external to the casing and actuated by the spring, and ilexible means interconnecting the lever means and plate holding means.

6. In a plate whirler for photoengraving use including in combination a casing enclosing a rotatable plate support and means on said support for holding a plate centrally of the support comprising a pair of plate holding means at opposite sides of the axis of the support and means urging said holding means toward each other in to engagement with opposite edges of the plate to centralize the plate on the support including a lever, a pair of inextensible, flexible members connected to the plate holding means and moved by the lever to move the plate holding means away from each other and spring means for moving said plate holding means towards each other.

'1. In a plate whirler for photoengraving use including in combination a casing enclosing a rotatable plate support and means on said support for holding a plate centrally of the support comprising a pair of plate holding means at opposite sides of the axis of the support and means urging said holding means towards each other into engagement with opposite edges of the plate to centralize the plate on the support including a lever, a pair of inextensible, flexible members connected to the plate holding means and moved by the lever to move the plate holding means away from each other said inextensible iiexible members being mounted on said plate support and rotatable therewith, and spring means for moving said plate holding means towards each other.

FRANK T. POWERS. 

